Dell's entry into the netbook realm has been talked about for weeks now and images have been around just as long. Therefore, when Dell made the Inspiron Mini 9 official today it felt like a familiar product already.

The one point that was unknown and was a subject of debate was how Dell would price the notebook. DailyTech reported earlier this week that some sources pegged the Inspiron Mini 9 as low as $299 with other sourced pegging the price in the $400 range. The official pricing for the Mini is $349 for the version running Ubuntu Linux, $399 for the cheapest Windows XP version, and $449 for the loaded XP version. Both XP versions are available now for order; the Linux version is pre-order only right now.

The Inspiron Mini 9 at $399 includes a $40 discount. All versions of the Mini 9 use an Intel Atom N270 processor at 1.6GHz and feature an 8.9-inch LED display running a resolution of 1024 x 600, built-in 802.11g Wi-Fi, Intel GMA 950 graphics, and a 4-cell 32WHr battery. The Mini 9 weighs as little as 2.28-pounds.

The Linux version uses a 4GB SSD and 512MB of DDR2 RAM. The base XP model has an 8GB SSD and has 512MB of DDR2 RAM. The up-level XP model has a 16GB SSD and 1GB of RAM. The systems can be ordered in black or white colors. Bluetooth can be added for an additional $20. The integrated webcam is a 0.3-megapixel camera and a 1.3-megapixel unit is optional for an additional $10. Every Mini 9 also includes 2GB of free online storage via box.net.

The Dell blog reports that at 6 A.M. Central on September 5 you can order a Dell Studio 15, XPS M1530, or XPS M1330 laptop and get a base Mini 9 for only $99.